Coin controlled binoculars



Sept. 27, 1938.

A. F. CASEY com CONTROLLED BINOCULARS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 31, 1954 INVENTOR I ATTORNEY Sept. 27, 1938. A. F. cAsEY COIN CONTROLLED BINOCULARS Patented Sept. 27, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,131,163 COIN CONTROLLED BINOCULARS Arthur F. Casey, South Norwalk, 01111., assignor to The Tower Optical Company, Inc., Norwalk,

Conn, a

corporation of Connecticut Application January 31, 1934, Serial No..709,091

Claims.

This invention relates to coin controlled optical mechanism, and more especially to coin controlled binoculars mounted in a universaly movable housing.

More especially. my invention relates to a method of mounting the binoculars within the housing, and the arrangement of adjusting means for the binoculars whereby they may be firmly ousing and accurately positioned for movement therein.

In devices of this type it binoculars be protected from surreptitious mobinoculars. Because of this fact it has been necessary to provide means on the outside of the using the instrument.

In practice it has been found that the usual adjusting means with which standard binoculars are provided for moving the eye lens carrying tubes inwardly and outwardly with respect to the main body portions of the binoculars is not sturdy enough to stand up under the strain imposed on it in moving the heavier main body portions.

undue strain thereon.

In some forms of coin operated binocular devices heretofore proposed it was necessary to rigmeans for securely mounting the binoculars without rigidly fixing the eye pieces to the housing.

A primary feature of the invention resides in providing a movable support for the binoculars secured to the main body portions carrying the objective lenses and which is movable by ameans Which also actuates mechanism.

same satisfactorily such mechanism.

Another feature of the invention resides in providing a casing with circumferential flanges defining front and rear openings and in the sealing of the casing with front and rear plates which are held firmly in contact with the flanges by means of a connecting screw, one of the plates supporting the binoculars.

Other and more specific features of the invention residing in advantageous forms, combinations and relations of parts will hereinafter appear.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is an elevation of my device illustrating the eye portion of the machine and showing its universal mounting.

Fig. 2 is a partial section and elevation of the machine showing the arrangement of the internal mechanism. Fig. 3 is a partial section and plan view showing the supporting and adjusting mechanism for binoculars.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings which showthe present preferred embodithose skilled in the art. The standard l0 carries a lock l6 whereby the standard It) may be locked onto the mounting post l1.

Because of this mounting of the casing IS on the pivots l4, and the mounting in turn of the member ID carrying the pivots M, on the mounting post II, it is readily seen that the housing [3 will be movable in a universal manner as is illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 1.

The housing 93 which is pear shaped is illustrated as having a main frame 29 which has circumferential flanges I 41 and I48 defining front and rear'openings M9 and I5!) respectively, and with which cooperate a front plate member 2| and a rearor eye plate member 22. Both the front and rear plate members are naturally circular in form and each has horizontal flanges 23 which. abut at the points 24 to form a tight a circular portion separated the usual binocular adjusting Q held in locked position from the peak of the pear shaped casing. The rear plate member also carries a cast structural member 25 supported by brackets 26 at either end, these brackets being screwed into the rear plate on stud members 2111 best shown in Fig. 2. The structural member 25 has at its center a screw threaded portion 21 with which cooperates a screw 28 adapted to traverse the front member 2! and to be screw threaded into the portion 2?. It will be quite obvious that this screw threaded member 28 will be adapted to hold both the front and rear plates together, with flanges 23 abutting at point 24 so that the two will be in tight relationship to the outer circular frame 20 of the housing i3. For preventing access to the screw 28 for separating the plate members, I utilize a plug member 29 which is by a lock cylinder 31] of any usual type and which must be key actuated to remove the pin 3i from the groove 29a in the'plug member 29 so that member 29 may be moved outwardly and access had to the screw 28.

The front plate 2! also has cast integrally therewith a chamber 33 having a series of vent holes 34 and adapted to contain calcium chloride 35 or some other moisture absorbing salt, so that the binocular lenses will be kept'clear of any moisture which may collect in the instrument. And this plate is likewise provided with a pair of visual openings each having sun shields 45b projecting outwardly therefrom and each being closed by a glass 45a.

The rear plate 22 has eye shade or tube members 36 equipped with protective glass 3? just beyond which are the eye lens carrying portions 38 of the binoculars 39. The eye lenses located in the portions 38 are placed as closely as is possible to the glass 3'? for reasons which will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. And preferably, as shown clearly in Fig. 2, a slight clearance is provided between the eye lens carrying portions 38 and the tube members 36 in which they are inserted. This loose mounting of the portion 38 is advantageous in that it prevents strain on the binoculars during the adjusting operations to be hereinafter described in detail. The objective lenses of the binoculars 39 are located in the carrying tubes 40 which are fixed to the main body portions I46 of the binoculars and are movable therewith relatively to the eye lens carrying portions by the usual objective lens adjusting screw member 42, which is present in all commercial types of binoculars, as for example disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 1,479,409.

For operating the adjusting member 42, there is provided an adjusting shaft 43 which is mounted in a bearing 44 in an extension of the plate 22, and is mounted rearwardly in a bearing 45 in a plate 46 which is secured by a series of screws 41a to a supporting structure I5! integral with the plate 22. Longitudinal movement of the shaft 43 out of the housing is prevented by a collar 56 abutting the plate 46 and fixed to the shaft by a pin 55. This member 43 has gear teeth 41 thereon which mesh with gear teeth 42a on the adjusting member 42. There is a knob 4311. on the shaft 43, overlying the outer face of the rear plate 22 above and between the tube members 36, whereby it may be rotated from the outside of the casing and thereby contribute adjusting movement to the binocular adjusting mechanism 42. The knob 43a further serves to prevent movement of the shaft 43 into the housing.

For supporting the binoculars 39-through the intermediary of objective lens portions which comprise the major portion of the binoculars, I provide a member 48 fixed to a block 4|. These two elements together form a main movable support I52 carried on the shaft 43 which passes through aligned bores I53 and I54 in the member 48 and the block M respectively. The binoculars may be secured to the'block 4! in any suitable manner, for example, as shown in Fig. 2, by holding the pivot member or sleeve I55 of the binoculars thereto in a bore I55 therein between the two pairs of connecting arms I5! and 558 similar to the arms shown in U. S. Patent No. 1,479,409, which pivotally connect the main body portions I45 of the binoculars to the pivot sleeve I55, and serve with the pair of arms i672 conmeeting the eye lens carrying portions to hold the binocular telescopes together as a unit. A hearing extension 49 which encircles the tubes 4 of the objective lens serves also to support the binoculars. The shaft 43 is screw threaded at 50, and is cooperable with screw threads I59 formed in the bore I53 of the supporting member 48 so that as the adjuster 43 is rotated to adjust the objective lenses relatively to the eye lenses through member 42, it also moves the supporting bearing member 48 and the portions 49.

Referring now more particularly to Fig. 3, it will be noted that the eye lens portions 38 are really inserted'into the tube or shade members 36 and are therein supported against lateral movement. It will be noticed, however, that there are no means provided between the tubes and the eye lens portions for fixedly holding the portions 38 against outward movement from the tubes 36 as is general in this art. By the rather unusual mechanism which I have provided for operating and supporting the binoculars, it is unnecessary to provide a means within the tubes 36 for maintaining the binoculars therein against axial movement. It will be readily appreciated that when the adjusting shaft 43 through the gear 41 operates the gear member 42a of the adjusting member 42, it will act to separate the eye and objective lens portions. At the same time, the threaded portion 50 of the adjusting shaft 43 will tend to move the objective lens portions axially through its screw threaded relation with the support 48 of the binoculars. There will thus be a double operation of the objective lenses, both through the regular adjusting mechanism 42 and through the bearing 48, the gear and screw ratios being, of course, properly adjusted. This same action is effective upon rotation of the adjusting shaft 43 in an opposite direction to bring together the eye and objective lens portions. Through this relationship, the eye portions 38 always remain stationary while the objective lens portions move relatively to the eye portions 38 through their double operating relation with the shaft 43.

Preferably and as shown in order to guide the movable support and to minimize lateral strain on the binoculars during the rotation of the shaft 43, a longitudinal slot I69 is provided in the supporting structure I5I into which extends an upstanding key IBI formed on the member 48. This serves as a guide means for preventing lateral movement of the support and thus insures longitudinal movement of the binocular body and objective lens carrying portions 40, and relieves the instrument from lateral strain during the adlusting operations.

ing shaft 42 through gear teeth 42a It will thus be quite obvious that in my assembly, the binoculars are supported with the eye lense in fixed removable relatively to the casing and relatively to the eye lenses. utilize a single primary ad usting shaft for caus- 2. In a coin housing,

of said housing, a movable support carried by said shaft, having a screw threaded connection therewith for movement longitudinally thereon and secured to said objective lens carrying porsaid shaft and movable longitudinally thereof are supported by housing; a rear plate on said housing; sight tubes movement of the support.

4. In a device of the character described, a housing;

thereof ARTHUR F. CASEY.

moving shaft will be moved- 

